Chapter 34: Abdominal Muscles (2)

After getting off the boat, He Dongchuan rode the bicycle, carrying Su Ting directly home. Once they entered the Family Residential Compound, they didn’t stop even when they passed by neighbors. People who saw them asked: “Why are they in such a hurry?”

“I don’t know, but what did they buy? Did you see that, two plastic bags!”

“Who knows?”

After asking each other but receiving no answers, the neighbors turned their heads and looked behind, but He Dongchuan rode so fast that by the time their eyes reached the end of the street, there was no sign of them.

Straight ahead, a turn, then the brakes.

He Dongchuan made riding the bicycle feel like a scene from Q1Q Racing.

After parking the bicycle, he let Su Ting get off first, then kicked the kickstand down, dismounted, untied the rope securing the plastic bags, and carried them into the house with one hand.

Su Ting stood by the dining table, drinking water while saying: “Just put the plastic bags on the floor, I’ll unpack them later. Hey, why are you closing the door in broad daylight?”

He Dongchuan didn’t answer. After placing the plastic bags on the floor, he clapped his hands, walked up to Su Ting, and, from behind, wrapped his arms around her waist. He lowered his head and kissed from her ear down, his voice low as he whispered: “I know you’ve been touching me.”

Su Ting froze, swallowing the water in her mouth before blinking and asking: “Have I?”

Of course, she had, though she wouldn’t admit it. He Dongchuan in a white shirt was undeniably attractive to her.

It had been fine in the city, with so many people on the streets. She was afraid of being noticed and having the label of “flirting” placed on them, so she had restrained herself. But from the dock to the Family Residential Compound, there were fewer people, and with them sitting face to face, doing little things wasn’t noticed by anyone. So, she had boldly touched the muscles on his lower back, tracing all the way down to his abs.

Riding the bicycle required strength in the waist and abdomen, and at the time, his muscles had been tensed. She had traced the shape of his abdominal muscles through his shirt, eight blocks in total, none missing.

He Dongchuan had to exert tremendous willpower to prevent himself from turning onto a side street.

He Dongchuan gently bit her earlobe, showing her with his actions that yes, she had.

Su Ting hurriedly put down her cup, pressing her hand against his chest, saying: “This is the living room!”

“The living room works too.” He Dongchuan murmured.

“The curtains are missing!” Su Ting quickly added.

The living room had two windows—one facing the front yard and the other facing the beach outside. Though their house was at the farthest end of the Family Residential Compound, there were still occasionally people passing by outside the windows.

He Dongchuan gritted his teeth, picked Su Ting up horizontally, kicked open the door, and carried her into the bedroom, gently placing her on the bed.

As he straightened up, He Dongchuan intended to undress but changed his mind after unbuttoning two buttons. Instead, he propped himself up with one hand over Su Ting, and with his free hand, he slid it under her shirt, whispering: “There’s no one around now.”

Su Ting: “…”

She suspected he was being flirtatious, and she had evidence.

But then again, his abs were indeed impressive.

The temperature in the Master’s Bedroom gradually rose. The two of them got closer, their breaths slowly intertwining, and it seemed like they were about to lose control. But just then, an untimely voice called out from outside: “Su Ting, are you home?”

He Dongchuan’s hands paused briefly but quickly returned to their task. He whispered in Su Ting’s ear: “Don’t mind her!” and continued unbuttoning her shirt.

However, the person outside didn’t leave. They muttered to themselves: “That’s strange. I clearly saw them come back, the bike is here, where are they?”

The door to the Master’s Bedroom wasn’t very soundproof. Normally, when they did anything, Su Ting would grit her teeth, not daring to make a sound for fear that He Yan, in the second bedroom, might hear them.

But at this moment, Yu Xiaofang, standing outside, didn’t bother to lower her voice, so her words sounded as though they were only separated by a thin wall from the two in the Master’s Bedroom.

This gave Su Ting the feeling of being exposed. She immediately deflated and pushed the man above her, saying: “I’ll go out.”

He Dongchuan gritted his teeth but said nothing. Half a minute later, he lay on his side on the bed, his face dark, saying: “Hurry and make her leave!”

Su Ting sat up, buttoning her shirt as she thought: “Even if I make Yu Xiaofang leave, it won’t do much. Before going to bed tonight, she definitely, absolutely must not come into the Master’s Bedroom!”

After buttoning her shirt, Su Ting walked around the large bed, glanced at the mirror to ensure her appearance was presentable, and then opened the door to walk out.

She crossed the living room and opened the front door.

Su Ting called out to Yu Xiaofang, who was about to leave: “Sister Yu, why did you come over?”

Yu Xiaofang had already stepped out of the courtyard but turned around when she heard the voice. With a surprised expression, she asked: “You’re home? I called you just now, but no one answered.”

“I was about to go to sleep.” Su Ting replied vaguely.

“So early?” Yu Xiaofang asked in confusion, but she didn’t think much of it. After entering the house with Su Ting, she saw two snake-skin bags on the floor and asked: “Did you buy a lot of things in the city today?”

“It’s not something I bought. A friend sent it to me.” Su Ting explained.

“What did they send? Such a big package; the postage must have cost a lot, right?”

Su Ting shook her head. “I haven’t opened it yet. The receipt doesn’t say what’s inside.”

Yu Xiaofang figured that if the sender was willing to spend so much on the shipping, it must be something important. However, even though she was curious, she noticed Su Ting didn’t seem inclined to open the package, so she didn’t press the issue and instead brought up something more important. “Principal Jiang came to see you this morning.”

Su Ting paused for a moment and asked: “She came to see me?”

“Yes. Since you weren’t home, Principal Jiang asked me to tell you to go see her when you return. She has something to discuss with you.”

“Why would Principal Jiang want to see me?” Su Ting asked in confusion.

Although Su Ting had gone to see Principal Jiang previously regarding He Yan’s class transfer, their relationship had not developed much beyond that. They would occasionally greet each other when they bumped into one another on the road, but they were not familiar.

She couldn’t figure out what Principal Jiang might want with her.

Yu Xiaofang speculated: “Didn’t Duan Xiaoying get expelled from Military Primary School? I heard Principal Jiang is looking to hire another teacher. I suspect she wants you to take over Duan Xiaoying’s position.”

When Yu Xiaofang had been removed from her position as homeroom teacher, many parents had caused a commotion at the school. Later, with the Children’s Day Celebration, the parents calmed down for a while.

However, during the event, He Yan’s outstanding performance made the parents remember how Duan Xiaoying had targeted him and nearly kicked him out of the choir. This led the parents to swarm the school again to express their dissatisfaction.

Principal Jiang had received these parents kindly but had never taken a stance. It wasn’t until the end of June, just before the final exams, that she finally spoke up and said that Duan Xiaoying had resigned and would not continue as a teacher next semester. That was when the parents quieted down.

The reason Duan Xiaoying gave for her resignation was similar to her earlier removal as homeroom teacher: she claimed she wanted to focus more on her family, which sounded very dignified.

However, few people believed this explanation. The military wives in the Family Residential Compound generally thought she had been expelled from the school.

Yu Xiaofang was one of those military wives who held this belief.

Su Ting frowned. “That can’t be. I’m not close to Principal Jiang. Why would she think of asking me to become a teacher?”

“Principal Jiang is looking for teachers, not friends. What does it matter if you’re close to her? Not all the teachers at the school have a close relationship with her.” Yu Xiaofang said.

“I don’t mean that. I just… there are so many military wives in our compound. Why would she think of me?”

“Sure, there are many military wives in our compound, but only about ten or so have the qualifications to become teachers. Most of them already have jobs. Among the remaining ones, you have the qualifications, and you’ve appeared in front of Principal Jiang. The school is short on teachers, so it makes sense she would think of you.”

“But I only have a middle school diploma.”

Yu Xiaofang said: “A middle school diploma isn’t low. Many of the teachers at Military Primary School only graduated from middle school.”

Su Ting thought to herself, but my middle school diploma is different. Although the original owner had a middle school graduation certificate, anyone who knew the situation would understand how lacking that certificate really was.

Due to the Cultural Revolution, the original owner had only completed one year of middle school.

Even without the upheaval, given her consistently poor grades, it was likely that she would not have been able to attend high school or a technical school. She would have had to return home and work on the farm.

Although Su Ting had a university degree, she was more than qualified to teach elementary students. However, Principal Jiang didn’t know that the original owner’s body had undergone a complete transformation. Could Principal Jiang really entrust a group of children to someone who had only completed middle school and was a poor student? Could she trust someone like that?

As a parent, Su Ting wasn’t sure if she could trust herself. To become a teacher, one should at least be a military wife who had completed middle school and had solid qualifications, right?

…

Once Yu Xiaofang left, He Dongchuan came out from the master bedroom.

He had already calmed down physically; he was just thirsty. After coming out, he poured himself a glass of water, drank it, and then asked: “What did Comrade Yu want with you?”

“She said Principal Jiang came looking for me, and I need to go to her place.” Su Ting replied.

“What does she want?”

Su Ting shook her head. “I’ll only know when I get there.”

“Do you want me to go with you?”

“No need. It’s not far.” Su Ting stood up from the chair and took a couple of steps toward the door, then remembered to say: “When you get the chance, remember to call He Yan back. He hasn’t finished his summer homework yet.”

“Okay.”

…